ZAGREB, May 9, 2020 - Croatia had one of the strongest resistance movements in World War II Europe, which is why it was on the side of the victors, the Croatian government said on Friday, underlining the important role of Croatia's first president Franjo Tuđman in that movement.

In a statement issued on the occasion of Victory Day, the government said that "a large number of Croatian citizens rose against Hitler's fascist regime that had conquered the whole of Europe."

The Croatian antifascist movement - the National Liberation Movement - was led mostly by Partisan units under the command of Josip Broz Tito but it also included a large number of members of the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS) and other political parties.

"It was owing to them that Croatia at the time had one of the strongest resistance movements in occupied Europe, emerging from World War II as a victor, with Istria and Dalmatia having been claimed back," the statement says, noting that the first president of modern-day Croatia, Franjo Tuđman, had been a prominent member of that movement.

Istria and Dalmatia were returned to Croatia after the capitulation of Italy and the defeat of the Ustasha regime that had ceded a part of Croatian territory to Italy.

The government said that the victory over fascism, reconciliation and the culture of remembrance "were preconditions to start building a united Europe" while the collapse of communism "enabled the European integration of almost the entire continent."

During WWII, "the darkest period in the history of humankind", "tens of thousands of people" were killed in Croatia "because of their ethnicity or political affiliation", the government said in the statement.

In the Ustasha-run concentration camp of Jasenovac, more than 83,000 Serbs, Roma, Jews, Croats and members of other ethnic groups were killed.

More info about the World War II can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, May 9, 2020 - Former Defence Minister Damir Krstičević said on his Facebook page on Friday that he had resigned because of his sense of responsibility and military honour.

"I resigned at Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence because of my sense of responsibility and military honour. I am above all a general who fought in the Homeland War and I always took responsibility and care for my men, both in wartime and in peacetime," Krstičević wrote.

He thanked Croatian Army servicemen and Defence Ministry staff for their dedicated work over the past four years.

"Keep on working to make the Croatian Army stronger and keep on building on the victorious spirit of the Homeland War. Strengthening the Croatian Army is your permanent mission and has no alternative," he said.

Krstičević resigned on Thursday after a military trainer aircraft crashed in the Zadar hinterland killing both airmen aboard.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković accepted his resignation, saying that he did not decide so because he thought Krstičević was responsible but because he respected him.

More news about the Ministry of Defence can be found in the Politics section.

May 9, 2020 - Wine lovers of Ilok Cellars can now order their favorite wine from the comfort and safety of their home, as Ilok Cellars opened the virtual doors of its new online wine shop.

Chances are, you've heard a thing or two about Ilocki Podrumi (Ilok Cellars), as it is perhaps the biggest hit in Croatia's easternmost town of Ilok. It is the winery that provided 11,000 bottles of wine for the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth in London back in 1953, and more for the royal weddings of William and Kate, and Harry and Meghan. It is also a winery which was the most decorated in the history of Croatian wine, and one which had the most incredible survival story from the Homeland War. 

You could say that Ilok Cellars is quite famous. 

And now, in the corona era, HRTurizam writes that it won't be hard to find your favorite wine in the winery's new online wine shop, as Ilok Cellars has included its entire range in the online offer.

This extensive collection presents an ideal wine for all occasions. Whether you're toasting to good news, surprising your loved one, or just enjoying your favorite book, you'll find a wine that suits you for every moment.

Graševina, Kapistran white and Kapistran red from the classic line of wines go with everything you love, and can be widely applied in gastronomy to pair with your daily menu. 

The new vintage from the selected wine line of Ilok Cellars is ideal for every day and with every lunch, thanks to its youthfulness and freshness.

For special occasions, there are top wines from the unique, richly sunny wine-growing position of Principovac. The limited Principovac line in its palette offers semi-dry and semi-sweet Graševina, Chardonnay and Traminac, which make the perfect wines for a celebration.

In the online wine shop of Ilok Cellars, you will find all the predicate Traminers, from late to ice harvest, for those most special occasions and moments to remember.

Delivery is free for all orders over 350 kuna, and is currently done only in Croatia.

Order your favorite wine from Ilok cellars here.

To read more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

May 8, 2020 - Korean Air has stopped ticket sales to Zagreb, while Air Transat has pushed back its Zagreb service to July. 

Ex Yu Aviation announced that Korean Air will not resume its seasonal service between Seoul and Zagreb from September 1, and has officially stopped ticket sales. 

This isn’t entirely surprising given the COVID-19 pandemic, as Korean Air will only operate at 20% of its usual international capacity, or only 32 of its 110 international routes (just 146 flights per week). In May, Korean Air is running only 13 routes, or 55 per week. 

Recall, the Seoul-Zagreb service should have resumed in March but was delayed first until June, and then September as the coronavirus spread globally. 

In 2019, Korean Air handled 43,123 passengers on the Seoul-Zagreb service. 

Furthermore, Ex Yu Aviation reports that Canadian carrier Air Transat has delayed its seasonal service between Toronto and Zagreb by a month, until July 2. The airline has plans to fly to Zagreb three times per week until mid-September, and then two times per week until late October. However, nothing is guaranteed. 

Because of COVID-19, the Canadian airline has suspended all services until June 30. 

"These are extraordinary circumstances, when all airlines and travel companies have been forced to temporarily halt or drastically reduce their operations while governments have decided to close their borders. This unprecedented situation is well beyond our control,” Air Transat said in a statement. 

Recall, Air Canada Rouge already suspended its service between Toronto and Zagreb this year.

If you're wondering about how the future of flights to Croatia will look in the post-corona world, TCN caught up with Max Oldorf, COO of the aviation data company, ch-aviation. You can read our interview here.

Need to find the latest Croatia COVID-19 travel advice? When will borders open, flights take off, and tourism finally begin? Check out our overview of what we know at the moment here.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

May 8, 2020 - Tourism is on hold, but most of us have plenty of time. So let's look at the virtual resources available to explore Croatia virtually. We continue our new Virtual Croatia series with the tools to discover Klis.

A few weeks ago I wrote that being a tourism blogger in the corona era was about as useful as being a cocktail barman in Saudi Arabia. I feel less useless now, a few weeks later, and I am encouraged by the number of Croatian tourism businesses who are contacting us wanting to start thinking of promoting post-corona tourism. 

One of the challenges of writing about tourism at the moment is that there is nothing positive to write about. With people confined to their homes and tourism in Croatia currently not possible, many have decided to go into hibernation until it is all over. 

I think that this is a mistake, and I have greatly enjoyed the TCN series by Zoran Pejovic of Paradox Hospitality on thinking ahead to tourism in a post-corona world.  You can find Zoran's articles here.

Way back on March 14 - several lifetimes ago - I published an article called Tourism in the Corona Age: 10 Virtual Ways to Discover Zagreb. The way I saw things, now was an OUTSTANDING opportunity for tourism promotion. People have time, they yearn for their freedom and former lives, so give them the tools to thoroughly research and enjoy your destinations, and you will have then longing to be there. And when they do come, they will have a deeper understanding of the destination due to their research. 

South Africa and Portugal were the first to do their post-corona tourism promotion videos several weeks ago (Post-Corona Tourism Planning: Lessons from South Africa and Portugal), a trick which has been followed by other tourism countries, the latest being Croatia with the national tourist board campaign, #CroatiaLongDistanceLove, going live yesterday.

But while these campaigns create longing and market presence, they don't really educate. People now have time to really get into destinations. And dreams of escape to somewhere more exotic are high on the list of priorities of many. 

So TCN has decided to help with that education with a new series called Virtual Croatia, where we will be helping you discover many of Croatia's destinations with all the best virtual tools available on your self-isolating sofa at home. 

We started last week with Tourism in the Corona Age: 10 Virtual Tools to Discover Hvar.

After this, we put our a press release (which you can read here in English and Croatian) offering a free article to any local tourist board in Croatia who would like the free promotion in our Virtual Croatia series. 

The Sinj Tourist Board was the first to respond, and now you can see just how rich the tourism offer is in this proud Alka town - your virtual tools to Discover Sinj. This was followed by DIscover Opatija, Discover Brela, Discover Rogoznica and Discover Omis.

Next up, Iva Kegalj of the Klis Tourist Board, who sent me some virtual tools to help us discover Klis. 

Let's begin! 

Don't Miss Klis, Live the True Experience

Klis, Live the True Experience.

2014 promo video.

Ashley Colburn's promo video of Klis.

Klis who? Welcome to Meereen and Game of Thrones

Klis may have one of the most famous buildings in Croatia and have existed for more than 1,000 years, but it is known by a totally different name by millions of people around the world. 

Welcome to Meereen! The HBO hit show Game of Thrones has transformed Klis in the last few years, and tourism to its globally famous fortress has boomed thanks to its location as Meereen in GoT.

GoT tours are in!

Klis Fortress, the Gateway to Dalmatia

There is no question about what is the most recognisable thing in Klis. Take a walking tour of Klis Fortress. 

In 2019, the brand new Interpretation center, the tourist attraction worth 1 million kuna, was opened. In the centre through the 3D hologram projections, visitors can learn about extremely rich historical and cultural heritage of the area. The project also includes possibility of 3D mapping on the exterior walls of the Interpretation center, which provides attractive visual content.

The Battle of Klis

The historical spectacle "The Uskoks' battle for Klis" is an international event organized by the Historical unit "Kliški uskoci". The two-day spectacle of reenactment history involving over 300 members of historical units and knights from all over Croatia and Europe brings visitors back to the Middle Ages and the era of defense of Klis from the Ottoman Empire.

The Uskoks' battle for Klis revives medieval and renaissance history with various cultural, musical, entertainment and stage performances. Medieval archery and sword tournament, fire juggling, archaic folk songs, tambourines, bagpipes, drums and fiddles playing live, oriental music with belly dancers, knight camps set in the northern foothills of the fortress, depicting warriors' life in the Middle Ages, various schools and workshops... All this in the archaic ambience of the old trades and crafts fair, domestic dishes and drinks, authentic handicrafts, autochthonous souvenirs and other Mediterranean products, with numerous exhibitors from Dalmatia and Croatia.

The central event is the reenactment of the historical battle between the Uskoks and the Ottoman Army of 1532. At a time when the Renaissance blossom in western Europe and at the same time fear of the mighty Ottoman army that had steadily advanced in conquering Europe, Klis and his defenders Uskoks bled for the benefit of the whole of Europe and became the first line of defense. The battle from this heroic period of history is re-enacted by trained members of historical units and knights from various parts of Croatia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Czech Republic. Scenes of siege, invasion, negotiation, conquest, defense, punctuation, individual and collective battles with swords, spears, maces, axes, along with firing cannons, rifles, firelocks...

The 2019 Battle of Klis reenactment. 

The battle promoted by an international travel agency. 

Training for the battle.

National television feature on the Klis Uskoks.

5 Fun Facts about Klis

The Uskok legends are everywhere. My favourite concerns the name of the parking place below the fortress, Mejdan, as Filip explains in the video 5 Fun Facts about Klis, above. A young Uskok, Milos Parizevic, was in love with a general's daughter, and to prove his love and win the girl, he took on the terrifying Ottoman, Bakota. An underdog in the duel, true love won the day, with our young Uskok hero first slicing the legs off his Ottoman opponent, then his head. He went on to marry the girl. In his honour, the candlesticks in the local church are the same height as him.

Stella Croatica - Healthy, Natural Dalmatia as It Once Was

Stella Croatica, which was crowned Croatian Rural Tourism Champion in 2018, is a multi-purpose complex offering many aspects of the traditional Dalmatian way of life. These include a Mediterranean garden with more than 500 herbs and plants; arboretum; olive and fig groves, vineyard and chef's garden; traditional Dalmatian tavern and original Dalmatian stone buildings around a village square; a factory producing traditional food products; exhibition and museum; and taste and buy option.

Active Klis

Klis has worked hard in recent years to develop its credentials as a cycling destination - and with considerable success. 

Klapa Klis

Nothing encapsulates the romance of a Dalmatian holiday than the wonderful local klapa music. Meet Klapa Klis.

Klis lamb - a meat lover's paradise

Klis is home to the very best lamb in all Dalmatia, and locals from Split often make the short journey from the city to get their share. Here's what awaits. 

Klis at Christmas

There has been a growing trend in recent years to put on more events at Christmas, with Advent in Zagreb the best and most successful example of that. Things are a lot cosier in Klis.  

Klis Webcam

For the latest live action from Klis, click here.

Virtual tour of Klis

Get to know Klis, the 360 way.

Official Klis Websites & a TCN feature article on Klis

Discover Klis via the official websites - Historical Unit Kliski Uskoci, Klis Municipality, and Klis Fortress.

Klis, a Dalmatian Tourism Success Timeline Beyond Game of Thrones & Meereen

THIS. IS. KLIS. When can we expect your visit? 

To discover more of virtual Croatia, you can follow this series in our dedicated section, Virtual Croatia. 

If you are a local tourist board in Croatia and would like your destination featured in this series for free, please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Subject Virtual Croatia (and destination name)

8. 5. 2020. - U seriji članaka na Total Croatia News stranici na hrvatskom jeziku čitajte kako se autorica odlučila i provela pandemijsko vrtlarenje usred grada Zagreba (prvi članak iz serijala); danas su na redu priprema zemlje i sjetva.

Ako znate išta o vrtu, odnosno biljkama uopće, nakon što ste vidjeli ove moje fotke i pročitali opis zemlje u koju sam planirala posijati to sjeme, sigurno ste se zapitali neku varijantu pitanja: “Pa dobro, jesi ti normalna?!”, na što se nastavilo “A tu joj ništa neće niknuti, u takvoj lošoj zemlji, džaba se uopće jadna trudi…”

E, pa, dopustite da vas malo utješim: znam. Znam da nema šanse da iz ovakve očajne zemlje išta uspije izrasti, koliko god dana ja provela rukama vadeći kamenje. A i, sasvim slučajno, imam i točno ono što mi treba da od te zemlje napravim – normalnu, plodnu zemlju. Imam kompost koji je nastao u mom dvorištu. Možda ste u nekoj od fotografija u prvome članku vidjeli plavu veliku kantu u samom uglu mog dvorišta (a možete je vidjeti i u prvoj sljedećoj fotografiji), tamo raste taj kompost. Radimo ga već godinama, daleko prije nego je grad Zagreb osigurao odvojeno prikupljanje bio-otpada. Tijekom normalnog kuhanja bio-otpad skupljamo u jednu posudu od sladoleda (naravno da se može kupiti i posebna posuda samo za to, s dobro prijanjajućim poklopcem, ali budete li pratili ovaj moj serijal, brzo ćete shvatiti da je meni prilično bitno u životu ne kupovati nove stvari za svaku prigodu, nego koristiti ono što se ima pri ruci i snaći se s time), napuni se svakih par dana pa je ispraznimo vani u plavu kantu. U nju, naravno, ide i pokošena trava, lišće koje s naših stabala padne u jesen i sav drugi bio-otpad koji se stvori tijekom godine. Kanta na dnu ima vratašca kroz koja se onda jednom godišnje otprilike izvadi mnogo kvalitetnog, zdravog komposta, savršenog za onu travu koju stalno spominjem, ili malo začinskog bilja koje redovito imam u dvorištu. Ove godine, jasno, gotovo sav kompost otišao je na moj vrt. Ne mogu vam čak niti reći u kilogramima koliko smo ga izvadili i ubacili, ali vjerujte mi na riječ da je bilo mnogo i da stvarno vjerujem da nakon toga kvaliteta zemlje ne bi trebala biti problem.

A onda kad smo bacili sav taj kompost i sve to fino usitnili i pripremili, jasno da se razina zemlje nešto podigla i da je počela prijetiti da će se „slijevati“ po opločnicima pokraj, u smjeru kojih ima pad. To sam, moram se pohvaliti, zapravo i anticipirala, pa sam unaprijed znala da će trebati napraviti ogradicu. Sreća da imam još mnoštvo ostataka od svoje stare ograde koju sam morala skinuti, te partnera koji ima ubodnu pilu i nije ga strah upotrijebiti je, pa smo relativno brzo izradili ogradicu. Još sam uvijek jako ponosna na nju i mogu vam prijaviti da, nakon ovih ozbiljnih kiša koje su pale u Zagrebu nakon duge suše, stvarno dobro radi svoj posao.

Spominjala sam u posljednjem tekstu da sam kupila peršin, mrkvu, blitvu, špinat, rukolu i tikvice. Od toga u ovaj vrt ne ide peršin, jer peršin ide u jednu veliku teglu u kojoj već godinama uzgajam začinsko bilje, gdje će se ove godine družiti s novim, mladim bosiljkom. Zasijala sam ih, napravila od otpadnog najlona za njih mali plastenik i za sad se čine da im je dobro. To znači da nam ostaje 5 vrsta, odnosno da svoj vrt moram podijeliti u 5 dijelova. Nakon ponešto crtanja, računanja i prekrajanja, to izgleda otprilike ovako:

(Tako bi nacrt napravili i izračunali svi normalni ljudi za svoj vrt od 3 kvadrata, jelda?) Tikvice su morale ići na jedan od rubnih dijelova, tako da ako rode mogu njih staviti da rastu i razvijaju se uz sami vrt, a ne u njemu. Za mrkvu sam nekako zaključila da je bolje da je ona uz živu ogradu, postojao je i neki relativno dobar razlog zašto sam špinat stavila na mjesto na kojem jest, ali ga se sada ne mogu sjetiti, a položaj rikole i blitve odredila sam gotovo posve slučajno. Izmjerila sam i podijelila svoj vrtić opet dijelovima davne ograde i pažljivo, prema uputama, posijala svojih 5 budućih povrća.

I sve što nam sad preostaje je zalijevati vrt redovito i čekati da biljčice izniknu. Ili možda ipak uspijem smisliti još nešto da im poboljšam šanse? Čitajte u sljedećem članku u serijalu.

ZAGREB, May 8, 2020 - On the occasion of Victory Day, May 8, and the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Zagreb, delegations of the Office of the President, the Government and the Parliament, as well as a delegation of the City of Zagreb, laid wreaths at the Tomb of National Heroes at the city's Mirogoj cemetery on Friday.

On the occasion of the two anniversaries, the Alliance of Antifascist Fighters and Antifascists (SABH) issued a statement, saying that Croatia must and should celebrate Victory Day, while the Network of Antifascist Women of Zagreb (MAZ) issued a statement warning about historical revisionism.

"The Croatian antifascist movement was very important and was actually the strongest (along with the Bosnia and Herzegovina movement) part of the Yugoslav antifascist movement, and consequently it was the strongest antifascist movement in Europe, not taking into account the occupied parts of the Soviet Union. Croatia can and should celebrate that day for many reasons," SABH said.

It noted that the antifascist coalition was a short-lived alliance of very heterogeneous and antagonised states, political movements and ideologies, temporarily united in "a bitter self-defence against aggressive Nazi-fascist states and their satellites."

The Axis states equally threatened to destroy parliamentary democracy, communism and many achievements of modern civilisation, SABH added.

MAZ issued a statement warning about the activities of historical revisionists and organisations which violated the rights of women and the LGBT community and the active incitement of intolerance towards ethnic minorities.

Intolerance is being fomented "as police mistreat and illegally deport refugees," it said.

"While we await a new beginning after the crisis caused by the pandemic, with the reconstruction of the city being the most important task, we must not allow the dregs of society to continue freely implementing reactionary policies. They cannot take away our history, which is a history of resistance and struggle for a better tomorrow," says the association.

More politics news can be found in the dedicated section.

ZAGREB, May 8, 2020 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković accepted Defence Minister Damir Krstičević's resignation on Friday, after a military plane crashed on Thursday killing two Croatian army pilots, saying that he did not make that decision because he believed Krstičević was responsible but rather because he respected him.

"Personally, I don't see any reason how I could in any way connect his political responsibility with the fact that that plane crashed, however, I understood from our talks that this situation has affected him personally," Plenković said after a four-hour meeting with Krstičević in Government House.

Plenković explained that he accepted minister's resignation because he respects him as a man and friend and not because he believes that Krstičević is responsible for anything.

"Accidents like this unfortunately occur. I am sorry that it affected him so much that he asked to be allowed to take a break from his duty in the government. I will not propose a new defence minister and one of the ministry's state secretaries will be acting as defence minister for the time being," said Plenković.

He added that Krstičević had informed him of the circumstances of the crash of a military trainer aircraft near Zadar in which two Air Force members were killed.

More politics news can be found in the dedicated section.